Category: council by-elections

Labour hold onto the seat of Belgrave in Leicester at yesterday’s council by-elections with a staggering 17 point increase in the vote share.

The by-election was triggered by the death of Labour councillor Mo Chohan, who passed away in October. The party selected Padmini Chamund to replace him.

Leicester is a strong Labour constituency, with neighbouring Latimar having voted 81% for the party back in 2011. But Chamund’s campaign yielded even stronger results, with 86.6% of the electorate choosing Labour.

In The Byfleets (Surrey), however, it was a victory for the independent candidate Amanda Boote. The council is known for its strong Conservative support.

Two more seats were contested last night: the seat of Wolvercote in Oxford (a Lib Dem hold), and the Highland seat of Wester Ross, Strathpeffer and Lochalsh (to be announced).